


Two Time

by Ozzyyy



Series: I Make Misferns Mainstream [4]
Category: Minecraft (Video Game), Video Blogging RPF
Genre: Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, BAMF Niki | Nihachu, Dream Team SMP Spoilers, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Gen, Homesickness, Hurt, Hurt/Comfort, Hybrids, Niki | Nihachu Needs a Hug, Niki | Nihachu and Ranboo are Siblings, Niki | Nihachu-centric, Older Sibling Niki | Nihachu, Protective Ranboo (Video Blogging RPF), Protective Siblings, Ranboo Angst (Video Blogging RPF), Ranboo Needs a Hug (Video Blogging RPF), Ranboo-centric (Video Blogging RPF), Sad Ranboo (Video Blogging RPF), Siblings, Technoblade Tries (Video Blogging RPF), Villain Niki | Nihachu, but home isn't a place its a person, especially to ranboo, except in people, its because his home has never existed, kind of, mob hybrid racism stuff, smh my heart, the antarctic syndicate, yall remember how mad he was when niki said lmanburg was their home?
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-22
Updated: 2021-01-22
Packaged: 2021-03-13 20:48:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,356
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28909590
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ozzyyy/pseuds/Ozzyyy
Summary: Ranboo's never been so far from Niki before and it's hurting his lungs--Basically, lil adoptive bro ranboo misses his big sister who felt like the only person who could really save him, understand him, and now he's alone with people who are trying their best but just aren't his sister. and he defintely feels like it's his fault that she's not contacted him. luckily, niki takes techno up on his offer to join a syndicate in the antarctic, and they finally meet once again.
Relationships: Niki | Nihachu & Ranboo, Niki | Nihachu & Technoblade, Ranboo & Technoblade & Phil Watson (Video Blogging RPF)
Series: I Make Misferns Mainstream [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2098674
Comments: 8
Kudos: 373





	Two Time

**Author's Note:**

> i am MANIFESTING. I AM. MANIFESTING. A NIKI AND RANBOO SIBLING REDEMPTION ARC. not as in niki doesnt go feral ma'am can do as she pleases but can she do it with ranboo at least i need them to be siblings again i miss their interactions. ranboo legit tells her to stay with l'manburg because he's probably going to be executed and he doesn't want her to be executed too, because they have no reason to not trust her. please. *please*. 
> 
> tw: mild violence, mild blood, i think thats it. lemme know if i miss somethin'.

Ranboo's never been so far from Niki before and it's hurting his lungs. Not that he's having a harder time breathing, in reality, but it's hurting in the same way that oppressive energy in the air between past friends does. Truly, he isn't that far from Niki. In less than an hour, he can be at her house, her bakery, or at least what was left of it. 

But their distance, their emotional distance, is what was really stifling him. He's gulping down breaths of relief every time they pass in the street, but those moments are sparse and hard to find. Ever since their talk before Doomsday, where he told her to stay, to fold, to help L'manburg for her own safety first-- ever since then, he's barely heard a word from her. 

He's not confident on why, but Ranboo has theories. Whether they're catastrophic anxiety-based delusions or truth, he's not sure. 

It seems rather damning, however, that she hates his guts. The way they'd stared after she burnt the tree, flint still in her trembling fingers, had burned into his mind. Of all the things Ranboo wished he could forget, that was one of them. Her hateful, dangerous, gaze, fixing onto his across a sea of flames. His gentle sister, who'd spent more time defending him then ever raising her voice when frustrated with Ranboo, had been so full of hatred and disgust that he was caught in the crossfire. And he fed on it, because he was sick. 

Sick, exhausted, and hurting. For all he knew, he'd lost every one of his friends, all his allegiances, and had simply lost her too. Made her choose a side, a side that benefit her ideals rather than her safety. That was a choice not made by logic, but emotion. Something she always chastised him over when they were kids. 

So he hated her too.

That doesn't mean it didn't hurt him to write her name under those he couldn't trust. Doesn't mean that he spent his nights thinking hard of the good memories they had, in hopes they too wouldn't fade with time. He could write them. He knows he could write them. But they feel more genuine when they rest with him and him alone. 

They grew apart. She'd gone, probably hating his very being, blown up her bakery and disappeared into the treeline. Ranboo had packed up his things and left too, moving into the shack behind Techno's home. Physically, not seeing the burning remains of his home was comforting.  
But each night, there was the empty space where someone should've been. When he turns on his heel to exclaim about a new idea, about a realization he'd come to, but sees no one there. It's scary, but not nearly as terrifying as when, only for a few seconds, he wonders who he even expected to be there.

Because she'd always been there. How could he forget that? 

\--

A hand tightens into his hair and slams his skull into the pavement, cobble grinding against his cheek. Ranboo sneers, trying for intimidating but too terrified to even reach it. His heart is pounding in his chest, blood rushing in his ears. 

"Let go!" He screeches, clawed fingers swiping up and reaching for purchase. The man dodges his claws just barely, reeling back with disgust. With a bark of laughter, the man's boot hits against his face, pushing him further into the ground. Ranboo warbles out; "S-top! Stop it!" He'd just been looking for directions out of town, having gotten turned around in his travels. His hood had been so tight across his face, no one could've seen. But of course, his attention had been grabbed by a clustering family of bees. In his innocent pursuit of watching them buzz, the wind had kicked back enough of the hood to expose the stark white flesh of his cheek, startling a passerby. 

And, of course, she'd screamed. That scream became bait for violence, evidence against him. In seconds, the towering form of a butcher had cornered him against a wandering trading stand and pummeled him into the dirt. 

"Jesus, check it out!" The man muses, shifting the sole of his boot to tilt Ranboo's head towards the sun. He blinks away in the harsh light, unnoticed by his captors. Another pushes into his line of sight with a sneer, "What the fuck is wrong with it?" 

Ranboo winces, swallowing back an indignant cry at being referred to like an object.

"Some kinda... mutation?" The one in his view ponders out loud, crouching and eyeing him, "Endermen don't look like that." 

"M' not n' enderman!" Ranboo croaks, voice cracking off when the boot presses deeper, sword at his stomach. 

Something seems to click in the man's head, because a cruel smile grows on his face, "Oh-- oh it's a halfie, man. Someone fuckin'--" The man cackles, slapping the arm of butcher at his throat, "Some whore fucked one of those beasts! Lookit him! He's a fuckin' mess!" 

Ranboo's face grows tight, scrabbling angrily at the man's foot, ignoring the pressure in his stomach as the blade digs deep. He wants to scream, wants to defend his mom, defend his dad, tell them that they were good people, kind people-- that they loved him! 

His eyes sting as hot tears spring to his eyes, because he could defend them if he even knew who they were. If he could remember any of them. He didn't know if they were good people. He didn't know if they existed. He just knew-- maybe-- he had to have parents, right? 

The butcher's eyes widen, snorting, "You're tellin' me someone got with a freak?" 

"Probably tossed the babe into the streets! No fuckin' wonder! Lookit! Not human enough to blend, not monster enough to be fucked." 

Ranboo snarls, screams, ignoring everything in his body that says otherwise. 

No one expects the next force of nature to be a 4''11 girl sprinting full force into the butcher's torso, grappling at his knees to buckle him over. 

"Jesus! Randy!" The man startles, backing up a tick as the butcher stumbles to his left. 

"Lett'em go!" The girl yells, pounding her fists into his chest with little to no effect before she rears up her leg and kicks the man square where it counts, bringing him to his knees. 

"Fuck!" 

She backs just out of the way of the falling butcher, kicking away the blade and moving to stand almost over Ranboo, tiny fists curled at her sides.

"Back off!" 

"You're fuckin' kidding me, Randy, you got clocked by a little girl?" The man chuckles, eyeing her.

"And I'll clock you too if you don't get runnin'!" She shouts, spurred by spite and rage. 

"This isn't fuckin' worth it, holy shit. Little runt isn't even gonna live past 10 anyway. Leave the bitch, maybe someone else'll teach her a lesson." The man snips, hissing in her direction. He tugs at the butcher and gives her one last mean look.

Ranboo is startled to shit, his chest heaving with breath. 

The girl standing in front of him turns, once narrowed eyesight now wide and kind, "Are you okay! Oh my gosh," She breathes, hopping on her feet, "I haven't done that before! That was so cool!'

Ranboo balks, "Who... thank you?" 

"I'm Niki!" She grins, holding out her open palm and ignoring every pointed stare she gets as people pass. 

"Ranboo." He returns, reaching out to hold her hand before he catches sight of what's coating it. Which, unfortunately, is an immense about of blood, "I think I'm bleeding." He mumbles, tongue flicking out to wet his lips, "That's kinda bad." 

Niki frowns, once pleasant expression now soured with the realization that she's definitely taking in this much younger kid who may or may not be bleeding out on the ground. 

"Oh. Fuck." 

\--

The next couple hours had been spent with her dragging Ranboo behind the 'home', a nice word for the local orphanage center they had. She'd snuck in so many medical supplies, Ranboo was genuinely beginning to believe she was conjuring them out of thin air. 

Turned out, Niki had been in tougher scrapes then that. With kids, sure, but with much more fatal weapons at hand. 

She'd quickly patched up whatever scrapes he'd accumulated throughout his travels, winding gauze around his middle to seal up the blood flow that'd scared him. The entire time, Ranboo had been completely in awe of her. Her strength, her ability. She was strong, of course, but on top of that, she was brave. 

Niki had been able to do what Ranboo never could-- help. She'd saw something wrong and stepped in. Even if the odds were stacked against her, even if it wasn't socially correct. Ranboo couldn't even step outside without every precaution. 

Of course, he'd begin to stick to her like glue. And while she was... hesitant at first, she'd grown to need him around too. Her heart made a powerful ally, but Ranboo's head did too. Years of living on his own had made him the most acclimated to survival, to guiding social situations without violence. 

Now, without her, Ranboo felt like he'd lost his heart. The passion she had for life, for love, for hope-- it'd driven him. She always knew what to say to bring him out of anxiety spirals he'd so often get stuck in. Maybe they weren't blood related, but Niki had always been his sister, even if he didn't know it. Even if she didn't talk to him. Which meant he couldn't forget her, not entirely, but it also meant her absence hurt more and more. 

It was starting to affect his day to day to an unhealthy level. And he realizes this when he places his pickaxe in the furnace because he's too busy wondering if Niki is okay, if she needs him, if she ever did? If he had always been a burden to her and--

Ranboo breaks out of his stupor to yank his very nice pickaxe out of the flames. Maybe the netherite wouldn't burn, but the handle certainly fuckin' would. He clutches it close with wide eyes, stunned. 

"...Well that was almost disastrous." Techno muses, looking lazily between the furnace and the startled boy. Ranboo jumps, slipping his pickaxe into it's holster and giving Techno a weak grin;

"Hey! Yeah, sorry, I don't know what came over me." 

Techno grunts, shutting Ranboo's door behind him as he enters the shack. The winter cold floods Ranboo's senses, bringing clarity that will hopefully pull him through this conversation, because he hasn't seen Techno look this awkward in awhile. 

He stands there for a moment, the two of them basking in the silence and muted snowfall.

"So," Techno drawls, "Listen, I gotta... I'm not good with words n' stuff, you know?" 

"Doin' great so far." Ranboo quips. 

"Shut up. You've been actin' weird, alright? Kinda off. It's settin' us off, me n' Phil." 

Dread trickles down his spine, "Sorry... I didn't know-- I can try to--" 

Techno's already shaking his head, palms splayed, "No-- shit-- I didn't mean it as like... I'm not sayin' you can't be... weird... or whatever. I'm just sayin'... if you need to talk to someone, Phil is always there. For, you know, talking." 

Ranboo raises an eyebrow, "Not you?" 

Techno grits his teeth, "Aren't I sufferin' enough over here?" 

"Fair." 

"If it's somethin' I did, let me know, okay? We're not friends or anything but, you know," He rolls his eyes, shrugging, "We're neighbors. You're maybe sort-of Phil's adoptee this month. Maybe, you know, you're not the worst. So... just communicate, alright?" It's like pulling teeth, and Techno's expression certainly reflects that. 

"I will. Thank you." Ranboo huffs with a small laugh, amused by Techno's sheer relief at the end of a serious conversation. 

"Thank god that's over. Cool. Serious stuff over. Now can you help me in the Stronghold? I'm workin' on some new designs and I need fresh eyes I start goin' insane." 

Ranboo smiles, picking up his fur trimmed coat from it's place splayed across the crafting table and swings it over his shoulders, "Lead the way." 

"Cool." 

The tunnel into the Stronghold is pretty goddamn cool. Other then needing to relocate Orphan's parents, it was almost no work to link the two up. And no one was any the wiser, the unassuming Igloo was out of everyone's way, not like many people came out this far anyway. 

Just underneath the snow, however, the end portal lay with it's gentle, welcoming, hum. Ranboo purses his lips as a memory pops into his head. Phil and Techno told him to stop calling it that. Not an end portal. Table. Not an end portal. He's not really sure where he got the idea that it was a portal from anyway. It didn't go anywhere. 

As soon as they enter the stronghold, though, the hum soothes all his anxieties. It was welcoming. Maybe they didn't feel it, but it was. 

"Mornin'." Techno greets, stepping down into the chamber and circling the table. 

"Good morning!" Phil calls back from down the hall, "Just givin' a brief tour. There's not much, though." 

Ranboo snorts at that. Yeah, not much was an understatement. They barely had the war room set up, the 'table' and map spread across it being most of their influence in the place. Reconstruction would be a pain in the ass, the halls were so confusing and with his short memory, it was almost worse--

Techno's eyes pick up from where he's eyeing the map, hands leveled on the end portal, and a small grin works across his face.

"I knew you'd crack." He teases.

In comes Phil, of course, wings tight to his back as he enters, and behind him walks Niki. 

It's Niki. She's so different, but it's Niki. Her hair is pink now, a clash against the dark brown cloak covering her upper half and bending down towards her knees. The patchwork is familiar. That cloak used to be Tommy's. Or, rather, it was the original owner's, Wilbur's. 

And he doesn't know what to think about that new information. He doesn't know what to do with any of it. Niki is under people to avoid, people to not trust. But Techno and Phil brought her here, does that mean she's okay? Why is he trusting them over her, she's his sister, he should--

Those same flint and steel eyes bore through him, same as the day they met. 

"Ranboo." She breathes, like her lungs hurt too. 

"Niki." He says, so quiet it's barely audible. 

Phil's eyebrows raise and he looks between the two with pinched nervousness on his face. Clearly, he realizes he's walked into some situation he didn't intend to. 

He clears his throat and climbs the steps to Techno's side, tugging on his gauntlet, "Hey, mate, I think we have to check on the bee farm." 

Techno blinks, "What?" 

"Bee farm." Phil insists, now pulling Techno towards the exit and giving the two kids wary smiles, "We'll be back. Farm things, you understand." 

Despite Techno's deep misunderstanding of the situation they'd been thrown into, the duo climbs back up the ladder and disappear back into the flurry. 

Leaving him and Niki. 

"I missed you." He strangles out, because it's true, "I-I missed you a lot. I still do." 

"I didn't leave." She says, gaze dropping to the ground. Niki shoves her hands in her pockets, "You could've visited." 

"But you didn't... you didn't want me to, did you? Cause otherwise you would've... told me where to find you." 

"Maybe I did. Maybe you didn't see it." 

"You didn't. I would have." 

"How do you know?" She's playing coy, toying with the truth like she's ashamed to admit it. 

"Because I was looking, Niki. I was looking everywhere for... for you. For anything." His jaw sets, tears threatening to spill over his cheeks, "Where did- where'd you go?"

"I was nearby." She admits, frowning, her expression battles with the outdoors for the most stormy. 

"I don't mean location." He whispers, crossing his arms and rubbing his forearms at the cold chill that runs through the room. Silence is palpable. 

She relents, meeting his eyes with knitted eyebrows, "I'm sorry. I don't... I'm sorry for hurting you. I don't regret what I did to that tree, Ranboo, L'manburg needed to die. But I didn't mean for you to get... caught up in the crossfire. You were... were an unintentional victim." 

"It doesn't matter if you didn't mean to. It still hurt, Nik. I don't care about the tree, Niki, people come first. And you-- you were my people." He feels himself get worked up, breath getting caught in his throat, "Are... Are my people. My person." 

"I know. I know-- Ranboo, I know it doesn't make up for anything but I don't... I don't want you to forgive me right now. Because if you did, it'd be lying. I'm not the same person I was before I burnt that tree, 'Boo. You could forgive her, but it'd... it'd be forgiving a corpse. I'm sorry for leaving, I'm sorry for-for running away from it all. But do you know why I did it?" She asks. Her eyes are pleading, bearing into his very soul. 

Ranboo does. Or at least, he thinks he does. She had to be free. Like how Ranboo needed to be free of the panic room, like how Tommy needed to be free of Dream. Niki needed to break free of what was holding her back. 

Was he holding her back?

"Did you... did you leave me because I was holding you back?" He hiccups out, shoulder shaking. Because he has to know. He has to know if he's her Dream. Her panic room. 

Instead of the sternness he expects, Niki looks like she's been slapped. 

"Ranboo," She coos, biting her lip as she pauses to think, "Did you think I didn't find you because you thought you.. you were holding me back?" 

He nods, slumping his shoulders uselessly. 

"Oh, 'boo." She crows, ignoring the space between them as she yanks the taller into a hug, her arms wrapped around him, "You never held me back. Never. I didn't-- I didn't distance myself cause you did something wrong, Ranboo. I did it 'cause...." She chokes up, burying her face in his front, "'Cause I couldn't stand to have you see me suffering. And it was unhealthy and I shouldn't've done it, but it was nothing you did." 

"Good, because," He sniffles, chest hiccuping with little sobs, "That would've made working together really awkward." 

She laughs. It's like the sun eases back into the atmosphere, lighting up the tension. Even with tears pooling in her eyes, Niki looks so happy to hear him joke-- 

"I missed you too, you know." She interrupts, "I was so scared. I know you can handle yourself but.. I still worry." Niki's different. Her softness isn't as innocent as it was before, but it's still persistent. Still true concern and love bleeding through her. 

Ranboo lets his head fall forward to rest atop her's. He knows he can protect himself too. That doesn't mean he liked it. Doesn't mean he enjoyed doing it alone. 

"I could. I could. But it wasn't the same." 

She nods, knowing, and pulls back for a moment to cup his face with her hands, proudly grinning. 

"How long has it been? You look so much older! Have you gotten taller?" Niki pokes at his wet cheek, causing Ranboo to giggle and swat at it. 

"You're shrinking. It's only been a year!" 

"Too long, 'boo. Too long."

He nods, teary eyed and grateful to have his sister hold him once again, look at him like she's never been more proud of his success and growth. Ranboo feels like he's recovered a part of him, the empty space he turned to. The heart he'd lost in his chest. Air in his lungs. She's home. With Niki, Ranboo is always safe. Maybe that belief falters, but it never dies. 

"Yeah. Too long."

**Author's Note:**

> Niki calls Ranboo "boo" as an affectionate lil term and i will die on this hill. also i know a lot of people have siblings they don't like and argue with and it's totally valid-- but for the record, imma say that i met my step sister and learned she was going through the same things as me? and we bonded. that's my lil bug ;-;. so if my sibling dynamics seem very loving, its because for me and my experiences, siblings have been ride or die (and i feel like ranboo n niki would be like that. cause they out here adopting each other smh--)


End file.
